Ultrahuman, the Bengaluru-based health technology company behind a popular line of smart rings, is joining forces with Abu Dhabi’s public health authorities to develop a biological-age assessment model that could eventually reach people throughout the United Arab Emirates.
The company announced on Monday that it had signed a two-year memorandum of understanding with the Abu Dhabi Public Health Center (ADPHC). The collaboration will focus on developing and clinically validating a system that combines medical biomarkers with information collected by wearable devices. By analyzing these indicators, the model aims to estimate how an individual’s body is aging and determine which factors, such as sleep quality, physical activity, cardiovascular fitness, and metabolic health, may influence that process, reports TechCrunch.
The initiative reflects Ultrahuman’s broader ambition to expand beyond wearable products and establish itself as a health-data and analytics company. Rather than focusing solely on the hardware used to gather information, the startup wants to turn that data into insights and algorithms that can support research into aging, longevity, and preventive healthcare.
Speaking to TechCrunch, Ultrahuman CEO Mohit Kumar explained that the company’s smart ring is primarily a means of collecting physiological information. The bigger question, he said, is how Ultrahuman can use that information to develop meaningful health applications rather than simply selling a wearable device.
Government collaboration could allow the company to test and deploy its technology among a much larger and more diverse population than its existing customer base. Ultrahuman has sold approximately 800,000 smart rings worldwide. According to Kumar, the Abu Dhabi initiative represents the company’s first attempt to introduce a health algorithm at a national level. The long-term objective is to make the biological-age assessment available to residents across the UAE.
Despite its reputation as a smart-ring manufacturer, Ultrahuman says the model will not depend on any single type of wearable. Data from rings, wrist-worn devices, fitness straps, and smart patches could all contribute to the assessment, alongside conventional clinical biomarkers. The company also plans to make biological-age information accessible through government digital-health services, including TAMM and Sahatna.
Two Years of Research and Clinical Validation
Ultrahuman and ADPHC will spend the next two years developing and validating the model. Kumar said the eventual introduction of the service would take place in stages, although he did not disclose a specific launch date.
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The UAE is already an important market for Ultrahuman. Kumar told TechCrunch that the country ranks among the company’s 10 largest markets and generates approximately 4% to 5% of its total revenue. Ultrahuman has maintained a presence in the region for nearly five years, with customer retention reportedly around 25% higher than in its other markets.
However, the company's current user base does not necessarily represent the wider population. Kumar said most Ultrahuman customers fall between the ages of 25 and 43. A nationwide deployment would give the company an opportunity to apply its model to people from a much wider range of age groups.
How the Biological-Age Model Works
The technology has been developed using data already available to Ultrahuman. According to Kumar, the company combines users’ actual ages with wearable-derived physiological measurements and, in some cases, blood-test results. By examining how these health indicators tend to change over time, the system can identify patterns associated with aging and highlight differences from what would typically be expected at a particular age.
The distinction between chronological age and biological age is central to the approach. Chronological age refers to the number of years a person has lived, whereas biological age attempts to reflect the condition of the body based on measurable health indicators.
Kumar also clarified that Ultrahuman will not use UAE residents’ data to train the underlying model. Instead, the company will apply its existing algorithm to data within the UAE program. He added that Ultrahuman will not have access to personally identifiable information through the initiative.
Ultrahuman and Oura Pursue Preventive Healthcare in Abu Dhabi
Ultrahuman is not the only smart-ring company collaborating with Abu Dhabi on health-related technology. In May, the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi announced a separate partnership with Oura, one of Ultrahuman’s principal competitors.
That initiative aims to combine Oura’s wearable data with the emirate’s longitudinal health records, initially concentrating on women’s health and cardiometabolic risks.
Kumar said Ultrahuman was not aware of another company working with Abu Dhabi’s authorities on a biological-age model specifically. Although he acknowledged that the government collaborates with multiple health technology providers, he declined to discuss the details of Oura’s separate agreement.
The two partnerships highlight a broader shift in the smart-ring industry. Ultrahuman and Oura are competing not only to sell wearable devices but also to develop health platforms that can turn continuous physiological monitoring into useful insights for preventive care.
For Ultrahuman, the Abu Dhabi project forms part of a wider strategy to build capabilities beyond its existing hardware business. The company is also exploring smart-ring technology that could run software directly on the device, potentially supporting applications ranging from AI-powered interactions to gaming.
If the UAE initiative succeeds, Ultrahuman could gain an opportunity to demonstrate how wearable-derived data and clinical measurements can be combined to support health monitoring on a much larger scale.
